This invention relates generally to apparatuses for preparing meat on bones for eating, and more particularly to a press for making poultry, such as chicken, easier to prepare and more tasteful to eat.
Spicy chicken wings and drumsticks, commonly called "buffalo wings", are popular appetizers served at many restaurants and sold in supermarkets for home eating. Unfortunately, eating "buffalo wings" and other products made from chicken wings and drumsticks can present some problems. One problem is that such wings are messy to eat and much care must be taken that clothes are not dirtied when eating them. Another problem is that chicken meat is difficult to get to and much of the meat is wasted as it is spread thinly over the bones, especially in the case of chicken wings. Even a further problem is that the chicken meat, particularly the meat on wings, if overcooked, becomes dried out and unappetizing to eat.
Some restaurants, particularly more expensive ones, prepare chicken wings and drumsticks to be served as hors d'oeuvres by pushing the meat along the bones so that the meat clumps at one end of the bone. Typically the meat can then be served with the meat end down and the clean bone sticking up. This latter technique eliminates much of the mess associated with eating chicken wings by leaving one end of the bone clean so it can be held while eating the chicken at the other end. Also, this latter technique causes the chicken clumped at one end to be generally moister and tastier. Furthermore, waste of meat is reduced since the meat is not spread out thinly along the bone as with traditional chicken wings. Unfortunately, in restaurants using the latter technique, it is still done entirely by hand which is very time consuming and messy.
Thus, there exists a need for a device that can prepare chicken wings and drumsticks quickly and easily while eliminating the mess associated with both preparing and eating the wings and which also results in a moister and better product.
The prior patented art does include some devices for preparing chicken on bones for eating and for stripping chicken from the bones, but none of the devices is like the present invention. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 3,629,903 by Turner, issued Dec. 28, 1971, discloses a device for preparing a simulated drumstick from a chicken wing which has an elevated support plate with an aperture into which a bone can be inserted and the meat pushed to one end of the bone. However, the devices does not contain a press but must be done by hand. U.S. Pat. No. 3,412,425 by Sturm, issued Nov. 26, 1968, covers a method of producing simulated drumsticks from chicken wings by separating the bone and the meat and then pushing the meat to one end to form a chunk of meat. Although Strum uses substantially the same method as does the present invention, it does not disclose a press and thus, must be done by hand. U.S. Pat. No. 5,064,403 by Elsten, issued Nov. 12, 1991, teaches a hydraulic apparatus for deboning drumsticks. U.S. Pat. No. 4,014,075 by Van Bergen, issued Mar. 29, 1977, discloses a device with chambers having a press which pushes meat from the bones and extrudes it in a paste form. U.S. Pat. No. 4,377,884 by Viscolosi, issued Mar. 29, 1983, shows an apparatus for deboning chicken using stripper jaws to remove the meat. U.S. Pat. No. 5,090,940 by Adkison, issued Feb. 25, 1992, shows yet another apparatus for removing meat from the bones, but it is rather complex and much different from the present invention. U.S. Pat. No. 4,446,600 by Hooley, et al., issued May 8, 1984, teaches another machine for stripping meat from bones which uses a cam and stripping blades. Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,399 by Hegelmann, issued Feb. 20, 1990, teaches another apparatus for stripping meat from chicken which uses disks.
Thus, although there are many devices that either remove meat from the bone or push the meat to one end to form a "drumstick" effect, none uses a press having a structure like the present invention.
The objects and advantages of the present invention over the prior art will become readily apparent from the following discussion.